Gary focused on her, his eyes hardening. “All of it? Are you sure?” He swallowed and red infused his thick neck. “I’m going to kill you when I find you. Just so you know.” He clicked off, his face frighteningly intense. “Well. I guess we know where Wolfe is.” He tucked the phone back into the pocket and reached for a wickedly sharp-looking knife. “We should get started.”
* * *
Wolfe swung open the helicopter door and jumped from the military transport, his mind on Dana. Maybe she’d wear that yellow baby-doll thing again if he asked nicely, after he’d taken a shower and gotten out of this black mission clothing. He stopped cold at the sight of Brigid waiting for him next to a souped-up sports car. Her Irish green eyes swallowed up her pale face. He reached her in seconds. “What’s happened?”
Her teeth chattered. “Gary Rockcliff is at your place right now.” She’d barely gotten the words out before he ran around and dropped into the driver’s seat. She opened the passenger door and sat, securing her seat belt as he ignited the engine and spun away from the tarmac.
“Tell me everything,” Wolfe ordered, opening up the throttle, his hands cold on the steering wheel. Fury threatened to take him, and he tamped it down, only to be assaulted by a great wave of fear. His body bunched as if he’d taken a blow, and he wrestled all feeling into nothingness. “Brigid?”
She swallowed, her hands pressing against the dash when he took a corner too fast. “Raider, Nari, and I were having a late dinner when Mal called and said Gary was inside your house with Dana. Angus was already on his way to Mal’s for some reason, so he got there quickly. Raider and Nari took his truck to go cover the house as well, and I borrowed Nari’s car to pick you up.”
“How long has he had her?” Wolfe asked, his chest pounding.
“Thirty minutes or so. Raider and Nari should be there by now.” Tears filled Brigid’s eyes. “She’ll be okay.”
Wolfe drove faster, winging between other cars and driving on the shoulder when necessary. “His plan must have been to kidnap her, and Malcolm ruined that. He’ll be pissed off to have his plans changed.” He barely missed a motorcycle rider but sped up again anyway.
“Mal thinks Roscoe has been shot,” Brigid whispered.
Wolfe tightened his hold on the steering wheel and punched the gas pedal to the floor. “You have a phone?”
“Yes.” She fumbled for her burner.
“Call Force.” He’d be there by now and was the planner on most operations.
She speed-dialed and pressed the speaker button.
“Force,” Angus answered.
“It’s Wolfe. Give me a status,” he ordered, taking a corner on two wheels and barreling down the country road.
Brigid yelped and grabbed the handle above her window, keeping the phone held out toward him so he could hear.
“It’s a shit show,” Force affirmed. “Rockcliff is inside with Dana and has the blinds drawn. More than likely has the alarm engaged as well. Just a sec.” A pounding erupted, and then he was back. “We’re keeping him occupied as much as possible, but it’s not going to last long. He knows you’re coming, and he’ll want you to find a mess.”
A mess. As in, Dana bloody and dead.
Damn it. Rock no doubt knew about the explosion of his lab, and now he’d want revenge. Possibly, he wouldn’t have anything to lose. “How did he find her?”
“Dunno,” Force gritted out.
Okay. Think, damn it. “He’ll be expecting me to knock down the front door.” Wolfe cut through a field, risking the undercarriage of the vehicle.
“Yeah. What are you thinking?” Force asked as more pounding echoed through the line.
“What are you doing?” Wolfe asked, swerving to avoid a downed tree trunk. Where had that come from?
“We’re approaching from different entry points, keeping him looking for us. He fired out of the bedroom window a few minutes ago.” Force yelled something that Wolfe couldn’t make out. “I don’t want anybody without combat training here. Mal sent Pippa off with the truck. Brigid? You get in with Pippa and get clear. Okay?”
Brigid shook her head. “No. I’ll be nearby in case somebody gets hurt and needs a ride to the hospital.”
Force sighed. “That’s exactly what Pippa said. I have no doubt she’s at the edge of the lane right now, disregarding Mal’s orders. And mine.”
Wolfe didn’t have time to worry about it. “I’m approaching from the north right now and will park and run so Gary doesn’t hear another vehicle. I don’t want him to know I’m there until I’m in front of him.” He looked at a very pale Brigid. “How do I disengage just one area of my alarm without going to the panel? Like one window?”
They hit a bump, and she dropped the phone onto her lap. “You need to go to the panel or disable the sensor somehow. Where is the panel?”
“It’s in the garage, hidden behind a false wall.” A plan started to form in his head, and he took a turn into the forest, stopping when there wasn’t any more room for the car to maneuver. “We’re about half a mile away, and I’m going to run from here.” He secured her phone and opened his door. “You stay here or retreat the way we came and meet us on the road. But stay away from the house. Yeah?”
